It’s been a few weeks since my last update and it’s been a busy time – we’ve congratulated our new graduates, geared up ahead of the new term and welcomed a new cohort. Thank you to all our outgoing committees who’ve put in so much time and passion, putting on fantastic events and creating strong and inclusive communities.

A big congratulations to all those who’ve got into Bath! We’ve got a really exciting Freshers’ Week coming up and we also can’t wait to welcome back all our returning students. The biggest week of the year is just around the corner and it’s the perfect opportunity, whether you’re new or coming back for another year, to get involved with all things SU. Our new committees are hard at work brainstorming many taster “Give it a Go” sessions where you’re able to go along and try something new. Keep an eye out on our What’s On page throughout the summer and check out our offer – we’ve got over 200 groups from societies to sports. There’s truly something for everyone.

One of the best things about our groups is that if there’s something else you want to see, you’re able to set a new society up! Following your feedback, we’ve got a new affiliation window for new societies opening just after the start of term. This means you won’t have to wait an entire year to see your idea turn into reality! And if you’re a PG student, we’re looking at new ways to get you even more involved with societies, if you’ve got any ideas, please do reach out to either Sanya, your Postgraduate Officer or myself! Check back on our affiliations page in September!

For our new committees, we’ve just launched a brand-new event planner which aims at reducing the amount of paperwork by 30% and admin you need to do so you have more time to do what you do best – running events! A key part of my manifesto has been looking at streamlining our processes. We know we’ve got a long way to go but this is a great start. Please do feedback and share your experience with me. To make our offer even more accessible, we’ve also reviewed our guidelines for our Societies Membership Fund, a pot of money your groups can apply to for additional support for events.

Another manifesto point has been looking at enhancing professional development programmes to help students develop key competences for the future. Part of this links up with the relaunch of the Bath Award coming this September – a fantastic way for you to showcase to future employers your student leadership and volunteering roles and key transferable skills! Check out last years Activities Officer, David, sharing an update on the scheme!

In the next few weeks, I’ll be continuing to work on faith representation on campus, sustainability projects and as an officer team, we’ll be getting ready to share our Top 10 for the next year.

Until next time!

Sam x